Change Automotive to Aerospace:1955 Hi Temp Test Facility Downey CA

“Bomb Shelter” High Temp test facility typical control room facility layout.

Four test cells (used CO2 atmosphere), Vacuum chamber, Variable speed pump drive.

Remote controlled TV Replaced with controlled mirror.

3000 psi 8 gpm oil heat exchangers system

Vacuum chamber, electronics controls, CO2 supply

I was hired to set up and operate this facility – a cement slab when I arrived.

created and installed electrical and hydraulic remote controls – see top control panel

1956 XM-64 mach 3.5 G-26 Inter Continental Ramjet Missile

Collins, Radar Engineer, invented Position Transducer to solve vibration & temperature problems

Navaho Ram Jet Cadillac Gage high temperature servo valves used 1^st US Rocket engines

Ram Jet had titanium skin, used Monsanto OS-45 silicon base hydraulic fluid at 3000 psi

servo actuators in wings were exposed to 450 F skin temperature

First US rocket liquid rocket engine SM-64 Inter Continental Ramjet Missile.

7 were built 5 flown, last was a success.

Vacuum “peanut” tubes in X-10 modules

1955 X-10 Pilot-less Inertial Navigation test vehicle -- last to use vacuum tubes

Flown at Edwards AFB while the SM-64 was being developed.

1958 North American Aviation B-70

Two were built one crashed during test hop other flown to AF Museum Dayton OH ;

Originally intended to be supersonic Used 4000 psi hydraulic system

Used Autonetics triple redundant fly by wire servo with manual override

1959 Hound Dog with Autonetics Navaho Inertial Navigator

used Collins position transducers; now used on all commercial airlines.

Collins Position Transducer first used on SM-64 mach 3.5 Inter Continental Ramjet Missile.

A must: learn electrical & electronics for remote controls

1956 Home Made Radio. Capacitor, coil, diode only could pull in Mount Wilson signals to earphone

1956 Home Made Radio with PNP-NPN speaker driver added. Played music from Mt Wilson CA in home garage. 1957 Home Made transistor superhetrodyne; coils were miss labeled, cover removed and reconnected per real wiring – then it worked !

1957 Test equipment kits Oscilloscope, Signal Generator, Capacitor set, Resistor set

1958 (a) Home made test equipment: Voltmeter, Ammeter, Vacuum Tube Voltmeter & Variac. (b) Diagram of voltage control with semiconductors only. (C) Transistor Tester

All Transistor HiFi, per idea from Bob Kelley ex ham operator

used above test equipment to set bias and achieve Hi Fidelity

Hole saw, used to cut tree limb plugs and fly cutter to make holes to fit.

Change: Test lab to lead engineer MM I hydraulic flight controls t

Company picnic Minuteman I Dad’s helpers

1960 MM 1, Stage 3 Experimental servo actuator with built in movable jet tube servo valve. Torque motor moves “fire hose” squirt to one or other ports to push pilot stage spool, which ports fluid to extend or retract the main hydraulic piston. This was not the selected choice.

1960 MM 1, Stage 3 R&D version with plug in servo valve of flapper control kind.

1960 MM 1, Stage 2 Nozzle Control Unit

NCU at right fits diagonal & upside down from view show, to tilt nozzles for thrust vector attitude control.

Nozzle Control Unit shown with ablative rubber thermal protection

1960 MM 1 Stage 1, 2, 3 hydraulic Power Supplies. There was no “ON Switch”, Squib activated batteries a minute before launch. ref

battery power passes through a radio noise filter. There is no pump case, it’s immersed in the bellows reservoir. Output plugs into aluminum X frame. Art Greer and Lou Purpura came up with the packaging concept. These are “compensating” pump where output is automatically controlled to sustain a given pressure by rotating the plate that controls input and output area. The fixed angle pumps rotate at 30,000 rpm.

Change: MM I nozzle controls to MM II secondary injection controls

Minuteman II

Stage 2 attitude control with Secondary Injection

Two injector units at left were mounted as shown at right – hot gas nozzles were used for roll control.

Roll valve drivers included an inductive kickback path, to not destroy the transistor.

Injectant not consumed was dumped, MM 2 integrated electronic amplifiers used to measure actual flow per injector.

Change Secondary Injection to Rocket Engine System

Looking up at Post Boost Propulsion Looking down on Guidance section – exposed guidance section

Looking down on Guidance section, looking up at guidance section, looking down on post boost section, fitting sections

Post boost contained: Fuel and Oxidizer bellows tanks, 4000 psi pressure bottle, 4 roll, 4 pitch, 2 yaw & 1 Axial bi-propellant engines, 2 axial engine gimbal actuators, arm/disarm switch, interconnecting plumbing wiring and staging connector.

Don Jones of Space Division & I were told to write spec for this from artist sketch – Autonetics had received a one page contract to move out fast using new technology to deploy newly invented H-Bombs. Don went back to space and I remained becoming supervisor for system requirements and Integration – a 3 1.2 year secret effort. This system has been so successful it’s to be maintained through 2030.

MM 3 integrated circuit -- huge reduction is size Bi-Propellant valve -- One electrical connector per engine.

MM 3 in silo

MM 3 wae heads strike Kwajalain Atoll in Marshall Islands after 4,753 mi flight from Vandenberg AFB CA-Space Shuttle launch from FL.

David joins family in 1960, show with Mortimer the turtle 1963

Both tables made from wood clippings at CA home

3/8 x 1x 3 “ pieces glued on edge from center out.